Whatcom Waterway

Last updated: July 2026

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Read the 2023 Fact Sheet

We are overseeing the cleanup of the Whatcom Waterway site on the Bellingham waterfront. The Port of Bellingham is leading the cleanup in coordination with the City of Bellingham and the WA Department of Natural Resources. We are currently reviewing the detailed engineering designs for the remaining Phase 2 Site Areas (see map under “previous and ongoing cleanup work”) that need to be cleaned up.

Our last public comment period took place from April 24 to May 23, 2023 (read the fact sheet) on the following documents:

• Amendment to the existing Cleanup Action Plan (CAP), included as part of a legal agreement (consent decree) between Ecology, the Port of Bellingham, the City of Bellingham, and the Department of Natural Resources (DNR).
• Updated Public Participation Plan

We received 12 comments and responded to them in our response to comments summary. No significant changes were made to the documents, and they were finalized.

Want to learn more?

• Visit our 2020 blog to read about Ecology's Whatcom Waterway fieldwork. 

Progress towards cleaning up this site continues. A timeline of recently completed work and future work follows:

• 2024–2025: Dredged contaminated sediment from the Phase 2 Site Areas near the Bellingham Shipping Terminal
• 2027: Finalize the design (engineering design report) for the remaining Phase 2 Site Areas
• 2028–2031: Clean up the remaining Phase 2 Site Areas  

This timeline is subject to change. 

Join our email list to receive updates about the Whatcom Waterway cleanup site. Email Kristen Forkeutis, Public Involvement Coordinator, at Kristen.Forkeutis@ecy.wa.gov to be added to the list. Unsubscribe at any time.

The Model Toxics Control Act (MTCA) is Washington’s environmental cleanup law. It provides requirements for contaminated site cleanup and sets standards that protect human health and the environment. Ecology enacts MTCA and oversees cleanups. The MTCA site cleanup process is completed in steps over a variable timeline.

Current Whatcom Waterway cleanup site Public Participation Plan

This plan describes how Ecology will share information with the community and how you can share information with us. Ecology will review this plan as the cleanup progresses and amend/update it as necessary. 

Background and Contamination
The 700+ acre in-water site is located in Bellingham Bay south of the Holly Street bridge in Bellingham, Washington. The site is made up of in-water contaminated sediment caused by past industrial waterfront activities. These include discharges from the former Georgia-Pacific chlor-alkali plant, wood waste and degradation products from historic log rafting activities, and pulp mill wastewater discharges. 

The concentrations of the following contaminants in the sediment are above acceptable levels under the state’s cleanup law, the Model Toxics Control Act (MTCA), and must be addressed.

• mercury
• 4-methyphenol
• dioxins and furans

Bellingham Bay Action Team
The Whatcom Waterway site is one of 12 sites coordinated through the Bellingham Bay Action Team (BBAT). BBAT is a bay-wide multi-agency effort to clean up contaminated sediment, control sources of sediment contamination, and restore habitat, with consideration for land and water uses. In 2000, participants in this initiative developed the Bellingham Bay Comprehensive Strategy.

Over the years, progress has been made to fully understand the extent of contamination and determine the best way to clean it up based on updated science, regulations, and land use changes. The 18-acre Phase 1 Site Areas were cleaned up in 2016, and the 6-acre log pond area was cleaned up in 2001. Monitoring of both these areas and the 636 acres of natural recovery areas continues. The cleanup of the 71-acre Phase 2 Site Areas will be cleaned up next.

A timeline of the cleanup follows:

1996: Georgia-Pacific Corporation leads the cleanup
Ecology and the Georgia-Pacific Corporation signed a legal agreement (agreed order) to start the cleanup process.

2000

• Remedial investigation (RI) and feasibility study (FS) completed
  The RI describes the extent of contamination at the site. The FS compares the costs and benefits of different cleanup options and suggests a preferred option.
• Bellingham Bay Comprehensive Strategy completed
This bay-wide effort included 12 agencies from federal, Tribal, state, and local governments, and Georgia-Pacific Corporation. The goal of the project was to coordinate the cleanup of contaminated sediments in Bellingham Bay, control sources of pollution impacting sediment, and restore habitat, with consideration for land and water uses.

• Legal agreement completed
  An agreed order between Ecology and the Georgia-Pacific Corporation was finalized to carry out an interim action (early partial cleanup) of the log pond area.

Nov 2000–Feb 2001: Log pond area cleanup completed
Georgia-Pacific Corporation placed about 43,000 cubic yards of clean material over 5.6 acres to cover contaminated sediment and restore habitat. Based on monitoring results, additional material was placed along some shoreline areas of the log pond to prevent erosion (as part of the cleanup for the Phase 1 Site Areas from 2015 to 2016).

2002:

• Supplemental FS and Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) completed
  These documents re-evaluated and suggested a different cleanup option for managing the dredged sediment. This included using Georgia-Pacific’s aerated stabilization basin (ASB) as a disposal facility. This option only became available after the Georgia-Pacific Pulp Mill closed in 2001 and was no longer using the ASB as secondary wastewater treatment.
• Legal agreement completed
  An agreed order between Ecology and the Georgia-Pacific Corporation was finalized to conduct an interim action (early partial cleanup) to collect more data to help determine how to clean up the site.

2005: Port of Bellingham leads the cleanup
The Port of Bellingham was added to the existing legal agreements (agreed orders) between Ecology and Georgia-Pacific Corporation because the port acquired property from Georgia-Pacific Corporation and became the leading party responsible for cleaning up the site.

2006: Supplemental RI/FS completed
Based on additional investigations a supplemental RI/FS was completed for the site. These documents reflected changes in land use (from industrial to mixed use), the endangered species listings, and how contaminated sediments are managed.

2007:

• Cleanup action plan (CAP) completed
  A legal agreement (consent decree) was finalized between Ecology, the Port of Bellingham, and other parties to implement the cleanup and to settle liability. This legal agreement included the following:
  • site diagram
  • cleanup action plan (discusses how to clean up the site)
  • schedule of work and deliverables
  • list of required permits
  • applicable substantive requirements
  • public participation plan
• Supplemental EIS completed
• Design (engineering) work began

2011: Changes made the CAP
Based on new dioxin and furan information, the 2007 consent decree was amended with changes to parts of the existing cleanup action plan and the schedule of work and deliverables.

2015: Engineering design report for Phase 1 Site Areas completed
The engineering design report for cleaning up the Phase I Site Areas (Bellingham Shipping Terminal, log pond area, and the inner waterway area) was finalized.

2015–2016: Phase 1 Site Areas cleanup completed
The following work was completed in the Phase 1 Site Areas:

• Removed 111,446 cubic yards of contaminated sediment
• Removed 9,962 tons of soil and 265 tons of creosote-treated timber
• Removed 5,146 tons of concrete and asphalt rubble (over 98% was reused or recycled)
• Isolated contaminated sediment with 102,950 cubic yards of clean material
• Installed 36,600 square feet of sheet pile walls on the north side of the waterway to support the upland and prevent contaminated groundwater from entering the waterway

Scientists continue to carry out physical, chemical, and biological monitoring to make sure the completed cleanup protects people, plants, and the environment in the long term.

Monitored Natural Recovery Areas
Some areas of contaminated sediment are naturally covered by clean material flowing into Bellingham Bay from the Nooksack river. These natural recovery areas are monitored to make sure the contaminated sediment remains covered and out of reach from aquatic organisms.

2023: Cleanup Action Plan (CAP) amended for Phase 2 Site Areas
The CAP for the Phase 2 Site Areas was updated as part of a legal agreement (consent decree) between Ecology, the port, the city, and DNR. The amended CAP included these actions:

• Organized design and construction activities to prioritize early cleanup at the Bellingham Shipping Terminal (BST)
• Included a possible future change to the cleanup action at the head of the Whatcom Waterway to provide beneficial habitat
• Revised the cleanup action for the aerated stabilization basin (ASB), including dredged material disposal, due to changes in land use plans
• Added a cleanup standard for dioxin and furan compounds due to regulatory changes

July 2024–Feb 2026: Cleanup completed near the Bellingham Bay Shipping Terminal
Contaminated sediments near the Bellingham Shipping Terminal (part of the Phase 2 Site Areas) were dredged and disposed of in a permitted Subtitle D landfill.

Today: Reviewing engineering designs for remaining Phase 2 Site Areas
We are currently reviewing the detailed engineering designs for the cleanup of the remaining Phase 2 Site Areas.

2028–2031: Clean up the remaining Phase 2 Site Areas
The cleanup will remove, cover, and monitor contaminated sediments. The project area includes dredging contaminated sediments in the federal navigation channel and next to beach and water use areas used by the public.

This project also includes construction of a confined disposal facility (CDF) within the inner portion of the existing Georgia-Pacific aerated stabilization basin (ASB) that was once used to provide secondary wastewater treatment—see rendering below. Contaminated sediments dredged from the Whatcom Waterway site and other sediment cleanups in Bellingham Bay will be disposed of in the CDF. It will then be covered and developed into 12-14 acres of usable upland property as part of the Port’s Comprehensive Scheme of Harbor Improvements. Following cleanup, the remaining areas of the ASB will be reconnected to Bellingham Bay with habitat enhancements and public access improvements.

During the cleanup construction, the project could have short-term impacts on water quality and fisheries within the Whatcom Waterway, Whatcom Creek, and Bellingham Bay. In the long-term, sediment quality will improve and habitat will increase to benefit fisheries.

The Port of Bellingham purchased property from the Georgia-Pacific Corporation in 2005 for a nominal fee in exchange for taking on the responsibility of managing the remaining cleanup at both the Whatcom Waterway site and the Georgia-Pacific West site. The Georgia Pacific Corporation still has some financial liability for the cleanup costs.

The Port of Bellingham is leading the cleanup of the Whatcom Waterway site in coordination with the City of Bellingham and the WA Department of Natural Resources. The cleanup action is estimated to cost about $200 million. This figure may change following the completion of engineering design and permitting.

The port is eligible for reimbursement of up to half of their costs from Ecology through the state’s remedial action grant program. This funding helps to pay to clean up publicly owned sites. The Legislature funds the grant program with revenues from a tax on hazardous substances.

Need help or have questions? We offer translation and interpretation services at no cost. If you need these services, email kristen.forkeutis@ecy.wa.gov or call 425-240-4353. If you call, ask for an interpreter to be connected with one.

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Le ofrecemos servicios de traducción e interpretación sin costo. Para solicitar una copia de esta información en español, llame a Kristen Forkeutis al 425-240-4353 o envíe un correo electrónico a kristen.forkeutis@ecy.wa.gov. Si necesita servicios de interpretación, solicite un intérprete y permanezca en la línea mientras lo comunicamos.